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Introduction

Road Trip

Internet Resources

Image Gallery

Introduction

     Connecting to the Chicago Road, the Chicago-Galena State Road, also known as just the “State Road” extended west through Illinois from Chicago through Elgin and Rockford to Galena, Illinois located on the

Mississippi River.  After the discovery of lead in the 1820s, Galena (from the latin for lead sulfide) became a boomtown while Chicago was still a village.Today the old Chicago-Galena State Road follows U.S. Route 20.  In the city of Chicago U.S. 20 connects with the old Chicago Road, now U.S. Route 12, south of the Chicago Skyway. From this point the route is signed as General U.S. Grant Memorial Highway after Ulysses S. Grant.  Between Chicago and Rockford, U.S. Route 20 is a mixture of four-lane expressway, four-lane limited access freeway, and winding two-lane surface road. The road then runs along the southern fringe of Rockford and as a bypass north around Freeport.  Near Stockton, Illinois the route transitions from the interior plains to a very hilly northwestern portion of Illinois into Galena.

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Road Trip

If you have traced your 18^th or 19^th century ancestors to any of the counties listed below it is quite possible that they traveled to that location along this migration route.  Therefore you may find additional relevant information about your ancestral lineages by taking the following road trip through these localities.

COUNTY (Road Trip Segment)

COUNTY (Road Trip Segment)

COUNTY (Road Trip Segment)

Boone County, IL (2)

Carroll County, IL (3)

Cook County, IL (1)

De Kalb County, IL (2)

Dubuque County, IA (3)

Du Page County, IL (1)

Green County, IL (3)

Jackson County, IA (3)

Jo Daviess County, IL (3)

Kane, County, IL (1)

Lafayette County, IL (3)

Lake County, IL (1)

McHenry County, IL (1)

Ogle County, IL (2)

Stephenson County, IL (2,3)

Winnebago County, IL (2)

Genealogy Road Trip

This “Family History Road Trip” is divided into segments that require between 1 and 2 hours of driving time.  The entire 164 mile journey should take approximately 3.5 hours to drive at 50 miles per hour.  Within each segment you will find links to resources* that will assist you in planning a successful and enjoyable experience.  The following maps are designed to show a close-up view of the counties and communities along this historical route. 

SEGMENT 1

From: Chicago, IL to

To: Marengo, IL

SEGMENT 2

From: Marengo, IL

To: Freeport, IL

SEGMENT 3

From: Freeport, IL

To: Galena, IL

Segment 1

From: Chicago, IL to

To: Marengo, IL

Driving Distance = 58 miles;   Driving Time = approximately 1.25 hours

Begin your trip at the Chicago Cultural Center at 77 E. Randolph Street. 

The Chicago Cultural Information Center id locaed within the famous Loop section of the city it is in close proximity to Lake Michigan and Grant Park.

To leave this area proceed west on E. Randolph St. turn right on W. Michigan Avenue then left onto Lake Street.  Continue on Lake Street for approximately 13 miles to the junction of US Rt. 20 and US Rt. 12 at Melrose Park.   From here follow signs for US Rt. 20 west.  At Interstate 290, US Rt. 20 (W. Lake Street) will transition onto the expressway at Interchange 13B follow to the next exit (12) where  US Rt. 20 will depart.  Continue west on this route through Addison in DuPage County, Illinois and the city of Elgin in Kane County. 

The Village of Addison lies on Salt Creek. The community itself was named after 18th century writer Joseph Addison.  Early Elgin achieved fame for the butter and dairy goods it sold to the city of Chicago. Gail Borden established a condensed milk factory here in 1866, and the local library is named in his honor. The dairy industry became less important with the arrival of the Elgin Watch Company.

Follow US Rt. 20 into McHenry County and the city of Marengo.   

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The land which was to become Marengo (but was originally known as Pleasant Grove, and sometimes called Jefferson) was purchased from the Potowatami Native Americans in 1832 and Marengo was established as a township in 1835.

Use the following LINKS to find information about the counties and localities found along this segment of the Route.

General Profile

Genealogy & History Resources

Historical Sites

Segment 2

From: Marengo, IL

To: Freeport, IL

Driving Distance = 56 miles;   Driving Time = approximately 1.25 hours

     From Marengo continue on US Rt. 20 towards Belvidere the seat of Boone County.  A few miles east of Belvidere turn right onto Logan Ave. and follow into the downtown area where you will turn right onto State Street. 

The location where Belvidere exists today was first settled in 1834 by a Mr. Whitney, who named the location next to the Kishwaukee River "Elysian Fields". Census figures show 37 residents in that year. Belvidere was originally built on the north side of the river. In 1851, a railroad was built south of the river, the business section followed to the south side of the river, where Belvidere's downtown is now located.

     Follow State Street across the River and continue on until it transitions into US Rt. 20B. Follow US RT. 20B into Rockford the seat of Winnebago County.

Rockford was first settled in 1834–1835 by Germanicus Kent, Thatcher Blake, and Lewis Lemon, who came from Galena and established themselves on the west bank of the Rock River.  Halfway between Chicago and Galena, the community was briefly known as Midway, but quickly became known as Rockford, because of the excellent ford across the Rock River.

In downtown Rockford cross the river and continue on the route until it transitions back to US Rt. 20 west of the city.  Follow US Rt. 20 west into Stephenson County.  East the county seat of Freeport transition onto US Rt. 20B and proceed to the city center.

Originally called Winneshiek, the municipality when it was incorporated took its name from the generosity of Tutty Baker, who was credited with

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running a "Free Port" on the Pecatonica River. In 1837, Stephenson County was formed and in 1838, Freeport became its seat of government. On August 27, 1858, the second debate between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas took place in Freeport and gave the nation direction in the following years. Although Stephen Douglas won the election and retained his U.S. Senate seat, his reply to a question on slavery alienated the South, which called it the "Freeport Heresy", and split the Democratic Party. This enabled Abraham Lincoln to win the Presidency in 1860.

Use the following LINKS to find information about the counties and localities found along this segment of the Route.

General Profile

Genealogy & History Resources

Historical Sites

Segment 3

From: Freeport, IL

To: Galena, IL

Driving Distance = 50 miles;   Driving Time = approximately 1.00 hours

Leave Freeport, Illinois via US Rt. 20B and follow to its transition back to US Rt. 20.  Proceed west on this route going through the towns of Stockton and Elizabeth in Jo Daviess County.

The village of Stockton was established after the Minnesota Northwestern Railroad decided to build a station in Section 2 of Stockton Township in 1886.  Stockton became the birthplace of the Kraft Corporation when, in 1914, the Kraft Brothers opened their first cheese factory here. 

Arrive at Galena, the seat of Jo Davies County.  Turn right onto Main Street and proceed into the downtown area. 

Galena is a popular tourist destination known for its history, historical architecture, and ski and golf resorts. Galena was the residence of Ulysses S. Grant and eight other Civil War generals, as well as several entertainers and politicians.

End your road trip in the Galena Historic District where 85 percent of the structures are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Most of the district is found on Main, Bench and Prospect Streets.

Click on the map to view a full-sized image

Within the boundaries of the district are such notable homes as the Ulysses S. Grant Home and the Elihu B. Washburne House.

Use the following LINKS to find information about the counties and localities found along this segment of the Route.

General Profile

Genealogy & History Resources

Historical Sites

Internet Resources

The Google search engine

 button  and following web

sites    may     provide    you

with additional information

to assist with your research

about   this   topic. 

·         American Migration Patterns

·         Migration Routes, Roads & Trails

·         Brethren Life: Migrations

·         Trails West

·         Historical U.S. roads and trails - Wikipedia

·         U.S. Historical Maps - Perry-Castañeda Collection

·         Early American Roads and Trails

·         Frontier Trails: A Brief History

·         MIGRATIONS.org

·         ROOTS / MIGRATIONS

·         American Migration Fact Sheets

·         Map guide to American migration routes,1735-1815

·         Migration Book Store

·         Early Migration Routes

·         The Overland Trail Links--Ancient Indian Trails

·         American Westward Expansion

·         Migration Message Boards – Ancestry.com

·         The African-American Migration Experience 

·         Migration Trails – map of many U.S. trails

·         Migration Information & Maps By Ethnic Group

·   The State Road

·   U.S. Route 20 in Illinois - Wikipedia

Download a free 2-page Fact Sheet

about American migration routes

The following Link will take you to our library of genealogy reference books.   Here you will find books about historic American roads, trails, and paths.  In addition, there are texts that pertain to ethnic and religion groups, history, geography as well as other books that will assist you with your research.

This Link will take you to our

collection of reference books.  

Image Gallery

During our research we have collected images and photographs that are of general interest to a variety of historic American roads, trails and migration.  Some of them are presented on this website because we believe they tend to provide the reader with additional information which may aid in the understanding of this topic as well as our ancestors past lives.

US Rt.20 “State Road” at Galena, Illinois

Use this LINK to see the “Image

Gallery” that pertains to this topic.

Use the power of Google™ to find more interesting images about this topic. This button will link you to the Google Images Search   page.   Enter   the   topic   you   are

searching in the box and click “Search Images”. At the “Images” display page you will see the image, as well as the website of which it is associated.

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-- This webpage was last updated on --

01 July 2013